A Game of Tariff Ping Pong

The continuing trade war between the U.S. and China is like a game of ping pong, according to AFBF. Veronica Nigh, an AFBF economist, explained in a recent that just like the back-and-forth tariff announcements, a match of ping pong includes multiple games.

“There are multiple different rounds of tariffs by the U.S. and then retaliatory tariffs from China that are all building upon one another,” Nigh said. “At some point someone is going to win the match, but there are a lot of rounds in between the beginning and the end, and at this point we don’t know how many rounds there will be.”

The uncertainty points to increased volatility in the commodity markets going forward. “That’s something I know is frustrating because its outside of farmers’ and ranchers’ control, but it certainly looks to be a mainstay as we continue to deal with these trade and tariff wars,” Nigh said.